UPFRONT October 17, 2005 Issue

Committed to what lasts

WARREN BOLON, SENIOR WRITER

Thank you, Tony Ekwe in Nigeria. Mr. Ekwe closes his short message in this week's collection of readers' responses to Katrina, "Committed to prayer for our neighbor" (p. 16), by saying, "We in Nigeria will join you in prayers to ensure that all will always be well." Hurricane Rita is aimed at the Texas Gulf Coast as we go to press, so your prayers, Tony, reached into a future where many are seeking that "all will always be well" reality. You've reminded us to stay committed to what lasts—to the life, home, work, and companionship that exist and thrive, even though our human eyes can't see this solidly spiritual existence. It's the same assurance that's in the 23rd Psalm's promise: "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me." We never have to live in the shadow of death. Nor do we have to be bound by hypnotic images of fury and destruction.

Thanks, too, to lead feature writer Colleen Douglass—"A reliable commitment barometer"—for pointing out that commitment can be either a force for good or evil, depending on what or whom we're committing ourselves to. Especially helpful is the short checklist of "threads" that tell her when a commitment is uplifting or down pulling.

And I'm grateful to Judy Bell and Karen Van Nort for stepping "Out of our comfort zones." Written after Katrina, and before Rita was a concern, it tells about their journeys out of the familiar and into a wider embrace of their Houston community. Along with their fellow writers, Judy and Karen are committed to what lasts: the love of God that impels love of neighbor. Love's bottom-line message is, "I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever."

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